Please use the information below for communication and correspondence with the Lincoln County County Commission’s office.
County Commission
Lincoln County Courthouse
PO Box 497
Hamlin, WV 25523
Phone: (304) 824-7990 Ext. 221 (County Commission)
Phone: (304) 824-7999 Ext. 242 (Building Permit)
The Lincoln County Commission meets regularly twice a month. It meets on the First and Third Thursday of each month at 6:00 PM. The Commission also has some special meetings throughout the year. The public is invited to attend all meetings.
Please call 48 hours prior to a scheduled meeting to request an item be put on the meeting agenda.
Responsibilities
The law requires that the Lincoln County Commission meet at least four times per year. However, the Commission holds regular meetings twice per month, on the 1st and 3rd Thursday evening at 6:00 PM. The Commission also holds special meetings from time to time as needed. The Commission posts a notice on the Courthouse door at least two days prior to every special meeting. The Commission also meets on specified days during the month of February of each year when it sits as the Board of Equalization and Review.
In addition to the general duties, powers and jurisdiction conferred on the County Commission by West Virginia Code §7-1-3, the following provisions also govern the County Commission:
§7-1-3a. Construction of waterworks; sewers and sewage disposal plants; improvements of streets, alleys and sidewalks; assessment of cost of sanitary sewers, improved streets and maintenance of roads not in the state road system.
In addition to all other powers and duties now conferred by law upon county commissions, such commissions are hereby authorized and empowered to install, construct, repair, maintain and operate waterworks, water mains, sewer lines and sewage disposal plants in connection therewith within their respective counties: Provided, That the county commission of Webster County is authorized to expend county funds in the opening of, and upkeep of a sulphur well now situate on county property: Provided, however, That such authority and power herein conferred upon county commissions shall not extend into the territory within any municipal corporation: Provided further, That any county commission is hereby authorized to enter into contracts or agreements with any municipality within the county, or with a municipality in an adjoining county, with reference to the exercise of the powers vested in such commissions by this section.
Considering the importance of public fire protection, any county commission, public service district, public or private utility which installs, constructs, maintains, or upgrades water mains shall ensure that all new mains specifically intended to provide fire protection are supplied by mains which are not less than six inches in diameter. A permit or other written approval shall be obtained from the department of health and human resources for each hydrant or group of hydrants installed in compliance with section nine, article one, chapter sixteen of the West Virginia code as amended: Provided, That all newly constructed water distribution systems transferred to a public or private utility shall have mains at least six inches in diameter where fire flows are desired or required by the public or private utility: Provided, however, That the utility providing service has sufficient hydraulic capacity as determined by the department of health and human resources.
In addition to the foregoing, the county commission shall have the power to improve streets, sidewalks and alleys and lay sewers and enter into contracts for maintenance of county roads and subdivision roads used by the public but not in the state road system as follows: Upon petition in writing duly verified, of the persons, firms or corporations owning not less than sixty percent of the frontage of the lots abutting on both sides of any street or alley, between any two cross-streets, or between a cross-street and an alley in any unincorporated community, requesting the county commission so to do according to plans and specifications submitted with such petition and offering to have their property so abutting assessed not only with their portion of the cost of such improvement abutting upon their respective properties, but also offering to have their said properties proportionately assessed with the total cost of paving, grading and curbing the intersections of such streets and alleys, or the total cost of maintenance of county roads or subdivision roads used by the public but not in the state road system, the county commission may cause any such street or alley to be improved or paved or repaved substantially with the materials and according to such plans and specifications as hereinafter provided: Provided, That the county commission is further authorized, if the said county commission so determines by a unanimous vote of its constituted membership, that two or more intersecting streets, sidewalks, alleys and sewers, should be improved as one project, in order to satisfy peculiar problems resulting from access as well as drainage problems, then, in that event, the said county commission may order such improvements as one single unit and project, upon petition in writing duly verified of the persons, firms or corporations owning not less than sixty percent of the frontage of the lots abutting on both sides of all streets or alleys, or portions thereof included by said county commission in said unit and project.
The total cost including labor and materials, engineering, and legal service of grading and paving, curbing, improving any such road, street or alley (including the cost of the intersections) and assessing the cost thereof shall be borne by the owners of the land abutting upon such road, street or alley when the work is completed and accepted according to the following plan, that is to say, payment is to be made by all landowners on either side of such road, street or alley so paved or improved in such proportion of the total cost as the frontage in feet of each owner’s land so abutting bears to the total frontage of all the land so abutting on such road, street or alley, so paved or improved as aforesaid, which computation shall be made by the county engineer or surveyor and certified by him to the clerk of said commission.
Upon petition in writing duly verified, of the persons, firms or corporations owning not less than sixty percent of the frontage of the lots abutting on one side of any county or subdivision road or roads between any two cross-roads, all used by the public but not in the state road system or street between any two cross-streets or between a cross-street and an alley in any unincorporated community requesting the county commission so to do according to plans and specifications submitted with such petition and offering to have their property so abutting assessed with the total cost thereof, the county commission may cause any sidewalk to be improved, or paved, or repaved, substantially with such materials according to such plans and specifications and the total cost including labor and materials, engineering and legal service of improving, grading, paving or repaving such sidewalk and assessing the cost thereof shall, when the work is completed and accepted, be assessed against the owners of the lots or fractional part of lots abutting on such sidewalk, in such portion of the total cost as the frontage in feet of each owner’s land so abutting bears to the total frontage of all lots so abutting on such sidewalk so paved or improved, as aforesaid, which computation shall be made by the county engineer or surveyor and certified by him to the clerk of said commission.
The Commission has many other duties imposed on it by the West Virginia Code and case law. It also has discretionary powers to implement certain programs.
Duties
§7-1-3. Jurisdiction, powers and duties.
The county commissions, through their clerks, shall have the custody of all deeds and other papers presented for record in their counties and the same shall be preserved therein, or otherwise disposed of as now is, or may be prescribed by law. They shall have jurisdiction in all matters of probate, the appointment and qualification of personal representatives, guardians, committees, curators and the settlement of their accounts and in all matters relating to apprentices. They shall also, under the rules as now are or may be prescribed by law, have the superintendence and administration of the internal police and fiscal affairs of their counties, including the establishment and regulation of roads, ways, streets, avenues, drives and the like, and the naming or renaming thereof, in cooperation with local postal authorities, the division of highways and the directors of county emergency communications centers, to assure uniform, nonduplicative conversion of all rural routes to city-type addressing on a permanent basis, bridges, public landings, ferries and mills, with authority to lay and disburse the county levies. They shall, in all cases of contest, judge of the election, qualification and returns of their own members, and of all county and district officers, subject to appeal as prescribed by law. The tribunals as have been heretofore established by the Legislature under and by virtue of section thirty-four, article VIII of the constitution of one thousand eight hundred seventy-two, for police and fiscal purposes, shall, until otherwise provided by law, remain and continue as at present constituted in the counties in which they have been respectively established, and shall be and act as to police and fiscal matters in lieu of the county commission herein mentioned, until otherwise provided by law. And until otherwise provided by law, the clerk as is mentioned in section twenty-six of said article, as amended, shall exercise any powers and discharge any duties heretofore conferred on, or required of, any court or tribunal established for judicial purposes under said section, or the clerk of the court or tribunal, respectively, respecting the recording and preservation of deeds and other papers presented for record, matters of probate, the appointment and qualification of personal representatives, guardians, committees, curators and the settlement of their accounts and in all matters relating to apprentices. The county commission may not limit the right of any person to purchase, possess, transfer, own, carry, transport, sell or store any revolver, pistol, rifle or shotgun or any ammunition or ammunition components to be used therewith nor to so regulate the keeping of gunpowder so as to, directly or indirectly, prohibit the ownership of the ammunition: Provided, That no provision in this section may be construed to limit the authority of a county to restrict the commercial use of real estate in designated areas through planning or zoning ordinances.
Below are just a few of the many important responsibilities entrusted to the County Commission:
§7-1-5a. Excusal of commissioner from voting where conflict of interest involved.
§7-1-6. Power to punish for contempts.
§7-1-8. Continuance of matters at end of session.
Article 11. County Parks and Recreation Commissions.
§7-11-1. County courts authorized to create a county parks and recreation commission.
Article 12. County and Municipal Development Authorities.
§7-12-1. Establishment authorized; named; exceptions.
See Chapter 7 of the West Virginia Code for additional duties of County Commissions as well as duties of other elected county officials.
Disclaimer: Many other provisions of law govern the County Commission. The information provided here is very general and is not legal advice.
Discretionary Duties
The Commission has many other duties imposed on it by the West Virginia Code and case law. It also has discretionary powers to implement certain programs.
Some discretionary duties of a county commission include the following:
-Create and fund a hazardous material accident response program;
-Purchase, install and maintain photocopying and microfilming equipment;
-Establish an emergency communications system, or 9-1-1, including assessing fees to operate and maintain this system
-Provide for and assist fire prevention services, including providing funding for volunteer fire departments;
-Establish employee wage and benefits review boards;
-Enter into a contract with one or more banking institutions doing business in the county for the purpose of receiving payment of any service fee authorized;
-Adopt ordinances regulating the repair, alteration or improvement, or the vacating and closing or removal or demolition, or any combination thereof, of any dwellings or other buildings, except for buildings utilized for farm purposes on land actually being used for farming, unfit for human habitation due to dilapidation, defects increasing the hazard of fire, accidents or other calamities, lack of ventilation, light or sanitary facilities or any other conditions prevailing in any dwelling or building, whether used for human habitation or not, which would cause the dwellings or other buildings to be unsafe, unsanitary, dangerous or detrimental to the public safety or welfare whether the result of natural or man-made force or effect.
In addition to all other powers and duties not conferred by law upon county courts, such courts are hereby empowered to acquire, by urchase, right of eminent domain, lease, gift, or otherwise, and to operate and maintain, sewerage systems and sewage treatment plants, and to pay the cost of operation and maintenance thereof out of a special fund to be derived from sewerage service fees paid by the users of such sewerage system or sewage treatment plant: Provided, however, that the power and authority hereby conferred on county courts shall not extend into territory within the boundaries of any municipal corporation, sanitary district or public service district.
-The County Commission may enter into and execute a lease agreement to obtain equipment or material;
-Upon the verified application of any landowner whose land abuts on any unused road, street, or other travel way designated on any map or plat of a subdivision of land or otherwise within such county but outside of incorporated towns or cities thereof, is hereby authorized to close and vacate any part or all of any such unused road, street or other designated travel way by order entered of record after hearing as hereinafter provided (a strict notice and hearing procedure must be followed before the Commission will close any road);
-Establish a county coordinating council for the purpose of coordinating county improvement programs with state and federal programs designed for this purpose;
-Lease, rent or to permit the use of county-owned buildings, lands and other properties or any portion thereof by nonprofit organizations, including providing meeting places, service outlets and operational headquarters for organizations established within the county, and the Commission may charge for providing these services.
Building Permits
You must obtain a building permit for any substantial construction in Lincoln County. If you set up a mobile home on a site for occupancy, you must obtain a building permit. You must obtain a building permit if you develop or improve land in any way; construct or place any man-made improvements on land; or place or construct any structures on land, including but not limited to, buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling or storage of equipment or materials.
The Lincoln County Commission charges no fee for a building permit until the cost of improvement reaches $1,000, at which time a fee structure applies.
You must obtain a building permit for remodeling, also. If the remodeling, renovation or repair causes a significant improvement in the value of the property and if the property is located in a floodplain, you need to be concerned. For example, in instances where a house was built prior to 1987 (when Lincoln County joined the National Flood Insurance Program), if the lowest floor of the house is below the 100-year floodplain and the cost of the project is 50% of the value of the house before work begins, then the house comes under the new floodplain regulations. This means that you must take actions to bring the lowest floor of the structure up to or above the 100-year floodplain elevation.
If Lincoln County did not follow the F.E.M.A. guildelines, then the citizens might not be able to obtain any kind of Federal disaster relief or flood insurance. As we know, Lincoln County certainly is prone to flooding at certain locations, and we never know when we may experience a so-called 100-year flood.
The F.E.M.A. guidelines are strictest for residential structures. Non-residential structures can be built below the 100-year floodplain if they are waterproofed up to or above the 100-year flood level. The 100-year flood level is the elevation where, statistically, one flood every 100 years reaches that level. Another way of looking at it, the 100-year flood level is the elevation at which only a 1% chance exists that it will be flooded.
You may be zoned by the F.E.M.A. regulations in various ways. Zone A means that, while no specific elevation has been determined, it has been determined that the location will flood, whether or not within 100 year plane. Zone AE means that the parcel of land actually has been determined by hydrological studies to be located in the 100-year floodplain.
It is always better to be safe than sorry. Even if you have no doubt about the elevation (above sea level) of your land and whether it is located in the floodplain, you need to check with Floodplain Management before you make or plan to make any expenditures on improving your land in any fashion.
Remember, elevation is not the sole determinant of floodplains. The slope of the surrounding land, the size of the streams in the area and the presence or absence of many other natural and man-made structures greatly influence whether your land will flood or what floodplain it is in. An elevation that is not in a floodplain at one location may be well within a floodplain at another location.